Business record having a thermally imagable surface

Abstract

A thermally imagable business record such as a form, tag, label or the like is provided in which selected areas of the record may be activated to form an image upon exposure to heat. In one embodiment, at least one selected area of a substrate surface contains a thermally imagable coating of initially colorless color formers and color developers while the remaining areas of the substrate are left uncoated. The substrate may be pre-coated to provide a smooth, non-porous base coat for the thermally imagable coating, and may also include a protective coating layer to protect the subsequently printed thermal image.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A thermally imagable business record in which a selected area may be activated to form an image comprising: a substrate having first and second major surfaces, a thermally imagable coating of initially colorless color formers and color developers in solid form on at least one selected area of said first surface of said substrate which is less than the entire surface of the substrate, with the remaining areas of said first surface of said substrate not containing said thermally imagable coatings; wherein at least one of said initially colorless color formers and color developers are adapted to melt upon exposure to heat and combine with one another to form a visible image.   
     
     
       2. The thermally imagable business record of claim 1 including a protective coating layer over said thermally imagable coating. 
     
     
       3. The thermally imagable business record of claim 2 wherein said protective coating layer is selected from the group consisting of electron beam cured polymers, crosslinked, water-based polymers, and ultraviolet radiation cured polymers and a photocatalyst. 
     
     
       4. The thermally imagable business record of claim 1 wherein said thermally imagable coating has been coated as a pattern on said substrate. 
     
     
       5. The thermally imagable business record of claim 1 including a series of selected areas containing a coating of initially colorless color formers and color developers. 
     
     
       6. The thermally imagable business record of claim 5 in which different ones of said selected areas are coated to contain color formers and color developers which combine to form at least two different colors. 
     
     
       7. The thermally imagable business record of claim 1 comprising a continuous web for producing a series of thermally imagable business records and wherein said thermally imagable coating has been coated as a series of patterns on said web. 
     
     
       8. A thermally imagable business record in which a selected area may be activated to form an image comprising: a substrate having first and second major surfaces, a thermally imagable coating of initially colorless color formers and color developers in solid form on at least one selected area of said first surface of said substrate which is less than the entire surface of the substrate, with the remaining areas of said first surface of said substrate not containing said thermally imagable coating, wherein said substrate comprises a series of labels, wherein said second surface of said substrate is coated with a pressure sensitive adhesive, and wherein at least one of said initially colorless color formers and color developers are adapted to melt upon exposure to heat and combine with one another to form a visible image.   
     
     
       9. The thermally imagable business record of claim 8 wherein a release liner is adhered to said pressure sensitive adhesive. 
     
     
       10. A thermally imagable business record in which a selected area may be activated to form an image comprising: a substrate having first and second major surfaces, a thermally imagable coating of initially colorless color formers and color developers on at least one selected area of said first surface of said substrate which is less than the entire surface of the substrate, with the remaining areas of said first surface of said substrate not containing said thermally imagable coating; wherein said at least one selected area of said first surface of said substrate has been pre-coated to provide a smooth and non-porous base coat for said thermally imagable coating.   
     
     
       11. A thermally imagable business record in which a selected area may be activated to form an image comprising: a substrate having first and second major surfaces, a thermally imagable coating comprising initially colorless color formers, color developers, and a sensitizer in solid form on at least one selected area of said first surface of said substrate which is less than the entire surface of the substrate, with the remaining areas of said first surface of said substrate not containing said thermally imagable coating, and wherein said sensitizer is adapted to melt upon exposure to heat and become a solvent for said color formers and color developers such that said color formers and color developers combine with one another to form a visible image.